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SOCCEROOS VS COSTA RICA MATCH PREVIEW

New Socceroos boss Ange Postecoglou has revealed a twenty-two-man squad for the upcoming international friendly against Costa Rica in Sydney. The friendly, which is the first ever meeting between the two nations at senior level will be another test for Postecoglou’s side, who join national camp early next week to prepare for the friendly.

Costa Rica breezed through their qualification zone and earned automatic qualification to next years tournament in Brazil, and are currently ranked 31st in the FIFA World rankings. The new Australian manager has selected a mixture of overseas and A-League players, with Ivan Franjic, Mark Milligan, Matthew McKay, and Michael Zullo all being selected from Australia’s elite competition.

Ange’s ability to bring out the best in players is an asset that will benefit the national team in the short space of time until next years major competition, with the ex – Brisbane Roar and Melbourne Victory man repaying the faith shown by a majority of squad members who played a part in Australia’s latest qualification campaign. “The first task is to have a good look at the bulk of the players who played a significant part in qualifying Australia for the 2014 World Cup” Not frightened for throwing some of his junior players into big positions for big games at club level, Postecoglou ensured that everyone will get a chance to stake their claim for the future.

“I want to give every Australian player the best opportunity to stake a claim for Brazil and beyond.”
Lucas Neill will be once again selected, whilst Luke Wilkshere and Sasa Ognenovski were notable absences from the provisional squad of twenty-two. The exclusion of Luke Wilkshere opens the door for Ivan Franjic, who is a chance to repay the faith shown by Postecoglou after a strong start to this years A-League season.

The Socceroos will sadly be without the services of Mark Schwarzer, the goalkeeper suddenly announcing his retirement from international football. Australians will now look to Mitchell Langerak and Mat Ryan to follow in the veteran’s footsteps.

FORM GUIDE:Socceroos: WDLLLLWCosta Rica: LLWWDLW

MATCH PREDICTION
With both teams qualified for the world cup next year. Both teams will be striving for form in what should be a match with a lot of chances.
Personal Prediction: Socceroos 2-Costa Rica 1